There is an increasing need in many industries for rapid and efficient creation of reports by individuals who travel to a site remote from their normal place of work, record information relating to observations and fabricate a report that contains both text and images and is a written document or an electronic file. Information is gathered at the remote site by taking pictures and/or filming, and writing on a piece of paper or dictating to a tape recorder so the information need not be memorised. Industries which require report generation in this manner include construction and building inspection, utility inspectors, field scientists (geologists, biologists, oceanographers) and insurance agents. The motivation for this method of report generation is that the timeliness of the data contained in a report is significant and its collection, collation and dissemination in a report format is critical to its usefulness. It would also be advantageous to increase productivity of inspectors by limiting time spent assembling and entering reports.
The process for generating a report is particularly burdensome when a large number of reports need to be generated on a regular basis or when a large amount of data is collected over an extensive period of time and then collated into a single large report. Furthermore, efficient and timely management of large amounts of information, typically in either a report format or a database, is critical to the financial success of some businesses.
Currently, report preparation requires several labour-intensive and time-consuming steps that involve integration of text or voice narrative and images into a unified report format. The report format may comprise text, recorded voice, still images, or video images. The report is generated in one of several formats in the form of a printed document, a video, a slide show, or a multi-media presentation.
In the past, reports were generated following a method such as those outlined below. The first step in report generation is acquisition of information. Information acquired for use in report generation comprises images (either still or video) and associated prose describing the images and other observations, stored as writing on paper or stored on audio or video tape.
Images are acquired in several ways. A photographic camera records a scene on photographic film, a video camera records audio and visual information on a mass storage device such as magnetic tape, and a digital camera records an image on a digital storage device such as a random access memory. These image capture means are well known to those of skill in the art.
Integration of the images into a report is presently achieved using several different methods each having multiple steps. A very time-inefficient method, which is not necessarily computer-based and which is most applicable when using photographs, is to first develop exposed film into photographs and then manually paste the photographs into appropriate places in a report. This approach is slow, includes many steps that cannot be automated (for example, the film must be removed from the camera and processed, the developed pictures must be manually pasted into the report), and prevents easy retrieval of images by the operator from a computer based archival database short of manually skimming the images--adding yet another step. The increased value added in each step makes the procedure less efficient, less timely, and more expensive--more so when a failure occurs during one of the later steps.
A second method of integrating images into a report comprises the following steps. Exposed film is developed into photographs and the photographs into a digital electronic format with a device such as an optical scanner for input to a computer. Black and white scanners and colour scanners that interface with a computer for the purpose of digitising images are well known. Alternatively, an analogue output of a solid-state or video camera is converted with an analogue-to-digital converter or frame grabber into a digital format of an image for provision to a computer. The use of video image input to computers is well known. One such device, the Connectix.RTM. QuickCam.RTM. is a consumer product that interfaces with a parallel port on an IBM.RTM. PC compatible computer. Digital cameras are also known. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,402,170 to Parulski et al. an example of a hand-manipulated electronic camera coupled with a personal computer is disclosed.
These images are then converted for use with a word-processing application or other report generating software. Alternatively, a user records images onto video tape while observing the images; the user later transfers the images from the video recording to a computer. An operator specifies locations within a report at which the images are to be inserted and pastes the digital images into the report document following the report generating software's instructions.
As with integration of images into a report, integration of textual information into a report is performed using several methods.
According to the prior art, transcription from either hand-written notes or from dictation stored on audio tape is a common technique by which text is provided to a computer. These methods preclude using both hands for performing tasks while making notes. Both methods require that a typist transcribe the information with the inevitable introduction of errors into the transcription. Also, a significant time-delay between a creation of a narrative at an observation site and a time at which a report is finalised occurs.
More recently, speech recognition systems more accurately referred to as speech to text systems have become popular. Currently available systems support vocabularies in excess of 20,000 words and are reliable enough for day to day use. Speech to text hardware and/or software is well known and includes systems such as the IBM Voice Type Dictation System.RTM. (IBM.RTM., New York, N.Y.). Using a speech to text system for entering notes frees up both hands, but does not address the issue of report compilation time or effort as a process of report generation remains a multi-step process.
Once in an electronic format the text and images are integrated together in a report format with software known in the prior art. Examples of such software includes Microsoft Word.RTM., Microsoft Powerpoint.RTM., Interleaf.RTM. and FrameMaker.RTM..
It would be advantageous to reduce a number of steps required to generate a report. It would also be advantageous to generate a report in a single pass.
It would also be advantageous to generate the report while the inspector is in the field without having to return to the office to generate his/her report.
Object of the Invention
In order to overcome these and other limitations of the prior art it is an object of the present invention to provide a system for automatically compiling a report in dependence upon recorded information and commands.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a system for automatically compiling a report in dependence upon recorded information comprising dictation or text and images.
Summary of the Invention
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of automatically generating a report performed by an electronic system in dependence upon captured information comprising the steps of: providing prose to an information gathering system; storing the prose in retrievable locations for retrieval; capturing sound and/or image data using a capture means to provide a representation of the sound and/or image; storing the representation of the sound and/or image; while providing prose, associating an identifier with a stored representation and a retrievable location; processing the prose to provide information in a predetermined format; inserting, within the processed information, the representation identified by the identifier at a predetermined location in dependence upon the associated retrievable location; and providing the formatted processed information with the inserted representation to an output means.
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of automatically generating a report performed by an electronic system in dependence upon captured information comprising the steps of: providing recorded information comprising audio recording information and image recording information to a processor; using a speech to text means, processing the audio recording information to extract commands and to extract information; using a processor, formatting the processed information in dependence upon extracted commands; and, providing the formatted processed information to an output means.
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of automatically generating a report performed by an electronic system in dependence upon captured information comprising the steps of: providing spoken prose to a speech to text means; converting the spoken prose to electronic text prose and storing the electronic text for retrieval, the electronic text prose stored in retrievable locations; providing spoken commands to a speech to text means; converting the spoken commands to electronic commands; in response to an electronic command, capturing sound and/or image data using a capture means and providing a representation of the sound and/or image to a processor; storing the representation of the sound and/or image in non-volatile storage; in response to an electronic command, associating a representation and a retrievable location within the electronic text prose and an identifier; storing the identifier in non-volatile storage means; using a processor, processing the electronic text prose and providing information in a predetermined format; inserting, within the information in a predetermined format, the representation identified by the stored identifier at a predetermined location in dependence upon the associated retrievable location; and storing the formatted processed information with the inserted representation in non-volatile memory.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention there is provided a system for automatically constructing reports comprising: means for providing prose to an information gathering system; means for storing the prose in retrievable locations for retrieval; capture means for capturing sound and/or image data and for providing a representation of the sound and/or image; means for storing the representation of the sound and/or image; means for associating an identifier with a stored representation and a retrievable location while providing prose; processor means for processing the prose to provide information in a predetermined format and for inserting, within the processed information, the representation identified by the identifier at a predetermined location in dependence upon the associated retrievable location; and means for providing the formatted processed information with the inserted representation to an output means.
An advantage of the present invention is that electronic reports are compiled with a single data gathering step and a fully automated report compilation step.
Another advantage of the present invention, is that data gathering and compilation are organised and directed by a same individual at the time the data is gathered.
Another advantage of the present invention is that it alleviates a need for a data gatherer to return to a office to perform report compilation and dissemination.
Another advantage of the present invention is that it supports electronic data transmission, thereby reducing cycle time from data gathering to report generation and provision to an output means.
Yet another advantage of the present invention is that a portable system for report generation and data gathering that is worn by a user frees the user's hands while the user gathers visual and narrative information for a report.
Yet another advantage of the present invention is the use of a method according to the invention for data archiving and indexing.